The invention concerns a jet regulator with a sieve attachment and a flow regulator, the shell-like regulator housing of which has an outer circumferential edge region which can be placed on the inflow end circumferential edge region of the jet regulator and/or sieve attachment and is designed as a radially outwardly protruding ring flange, which regulator housing has a central ring gap in which can be provided an annular choke body of elastic material which delimits a control gap between itself and an inner and/or outer circumferential wall of the ring gap having a control profiling, wherein the clear flow cross section of the control gap can be modified under the pressure of the flowing water.
Flow regulators are previously known in various embodiments. Such flow regulators, which are designed to even out and limit to a preset value the water quantity flowing out of an outlet fitting per time unit irrespective of any fluctuation in water pressure, normally have a regulator housing with a central ring gap in which is provided an annular choke body of elastic material. This choke body delimits a control gap between itself and an inner and/or outer circumferential wall of the ring gap, wherein the clear flow cross section of the control gap can be modified under the pressure of the flowing water. On the inner and/or outer circumferential wall bordering the control gap is provided a control profiling oriented in the flow direction and formed by wall recesses and protrusions, in which profiling the choke body can be molded to a greater or lesser extent depending on pressure.
Flow regulators have been created which can be connected releasably into a unit with an inflow-side sieve attachment and an outflow-side jet regulator, which unit can be mounted using an outlet mouthpiece on the outlet end of the water outlet of a sanitary fitting (see DE 195 10 734 A1).
Flow regulators are also known which are designed narrow such that they fit below the conical sieve attachment which is releasably connected with the jet regulator. These previously known flow regulators are however adapted in their external form and/or connection possibilities to the outflow-side downstream jet regulator and where applicable to the inflow-side upstream sieve attachment. Previously known flow regulators are not however intended also for subsequent fitting with an arbitrary pre-existing jet regulator.
To limit the water quantity flowing out of the outlet fitting, so-called flow limiters have also been created. These flow limiters are designed disk-like and in the center of the disk have a flow opening which has a clear opening cross section adapted to the desired flow volume per time unit. These static flow limiters however only achieve or maintain the desired flow volume approximately, because with these flow limiters an increased water pressure always leads to a correspondingly increased flow volume.
EP 1 933 217 A1 discloses a unit comprising a jet regulator, a sieve attachment and a flow regulator connected in-between. The flow regulator of the unit previously known has a shell-like regulator housing which has an outer circumferential edge region which can be placed on the inflow end circumferential edge region of a jet regulator and is designed as a radially outwardly protruding ring flange and comprises a central ring gap in which is provided an annular choke body of elastic material which delimits a control gap between itself and an inner and/or outer circumferential wall of the ring gap having a control profiling, wherein the clear flow cross section of the control gap can be modified under the pressure of the flowing water. The regulator housing of the flow regulator here sits with an outflow-side part region on an inflow-side recess of the jet regulator while the inflow-side part region of the regulator housing protrudes over the inflow-side of the jet regulator and on the end facing away from the jet regulator is designed to receive the sieve attachment. The unit previously known from EP 1 933 217 A1 has components matched to each other which are designed such that in each case the outflow-side component fits into the inflow-side component and thus the jet regulator cannot be used without the flow regulator in conjunction with the sieve attachment. As however the inflow-side part region of the flow regulator protrudes far over the inflow-side of the jet regulator, the unit previously known from EP 1 933 217 A1 can only be used in such outlet fittings which have the necessary installation height.
DE 82 08 024 U1 discloses a sleeve-like outlet mouthpiece which can be mounted on the water outlet of a sanitary outlet fitting. A jet regulator is inserted in the sleeve-like interior of the outlet mouthpiece down to an inset stop. In the sleeve interior of the outlet mouth piece is also provided a flow regulator which is arranged on the inflow side of the jet regulator and is held spaced from this by a spacer ring lying on the sleeve inner periphery of the outlet mouthpiece. The spacer ring holds the jet regulator and flow regulator spaced apart such that a bell-like or conical sieve attachment is connected in-between. This prior unit known from DE 82 08 024 U1 also has components matched to each other in their shape, of which one component cannot be used without the other components. Since the components are matched to each other, since the jet regulator and flow regulator are held spaced apart by a spacer ring receiving the sieve attachment and since these components therefore have a comparatively large installation height, a correspondingly long outlet mouthpiece is required.
The task therefore exists of creating a flow regulator of the type cited initially with which a desired flow volume per time unit can be achieved or maintained comparatively precisely, irrespective of the momentary water pressure, and which if required can also be combined and fitted subsequently with the jet regulator already present on the outlet fitting.